One Hell of a Surprise
by Nox Aeterna13
Summary: Kagome prepares to celebrate her sweet sixteen with the gang, but what happens when a very unexpected and highly shocking change takes place that will test the members of the group and their emotions.
1. Prologue

**I've decided to go through my stories, edit them for mistakes, and hopefully improve their quality. If you're just joining me then I hope you enjoy it, and if you're already a reader of this story then please bear with me. New material will come shortly after I've finished the re-write.**

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Tomorrow I will have been traveling between modern-day Tokyo and the Feudal Era for a full year; that's right tomorrow's my sixteenth birthday.

It's been a hectic year, and I've had a tough time making it through. I barely have any time for school and that'll probably come back to bite me someday, but some things are just more important.

Inuyasha and the others are waiting for me on the other side of the well. I agreed to celebrate my birthday a day early with my family, as well as pick up some supplies, so we could celebrate this ambiguously special occasion together.

Tomorrow is so much more than my birthday. It also marks the one year anniversary of my first visit to the Feudal Era and most importantly, the day I met Inuyasha and freed him from the God Tree. It also marks the beginning of a long, hard journey where I made a few close friends, more like second family, and a lot of memories along the way, some good and some bad.

What I didn't know was that tomorrow would bring something so shocking to us all, it would rock our entire world.


	2. Celebration and a Quick Change

Kagome hopped through the well at about ten in the morning, greeted as usual by an impatient Inuyasha and a very excited Shippo.

"Kagome, you're back!" Shippo squealed, jumping into the girl's waiting arms.

All Inuyasha had to say as he leapt out of his tree was, "It's about time, wench."

Kagome glared at him momentarily, thinking it was typical that even _he'd_ try to ruin a special day like this. She wasn't allowed to dwell on that too long as the bouncing kit distracted her.

"How does it feel to be sixteen?" he asked eagerly.

Gently teasing her adopted child with a wink, she replied, "Well, I actually wasn't born until around two in the afternoon, so technically I still have a few hours to go yet."

"Oh okay...does that mean we don't get to celebrate 'til then?" he inquired, head cocked slightly to the side, obviously disappointed.

Kagome gave him an adoring smile, "No Shippo-kun, we can celebrate whenever you want to."

He literally jumped for joy before scampering off to tell the others of Kagome's arrival. She watched his form disappear over the hill before turning her attention back to Inuyasha; he hadn't moved at all. She watched as the breeze slightly disturbed his long, flowing hair as he stared off in the distance and couldn't help but wonder, did he know how much today truly meant to her? She had explained the future custom of birthdays and he understood that they were as celebrated as any other important holiday, but did he remember that a year ago today she first stepped foot in the Feudal Era. He probably did seeing as how that day had brought him freedom from his fifty year, coma-like prison. The most important question was, did he know how much meeting him had changed her and her life; how much she'd learned about herself because of him; how she'd learned what it meant to love someone and to have her heart broken. She sighed at the thought and crossed her arms over her torso, subconsciously trying to protect herself.

The reflective moment was broken by Inuyasha's unforgiving mouth. "Ya gonna stand around starin' all day or are we gonna head back to the village already?"

Kagome smiled fondly at his remark. That's Inuyasha for you.

"Yeah, let's go." They headed off to the village walking side by side. They hadn't gone too far when Kagome stated, "Something sure smells good. I wonder what they're making."

Inuyasha looked at her strangely, not that she noticed. "Yeah…I guess," was all he would say in response.

'Since when could she smell so good?' he pondered to himself.

~*~_One Hell of a Surprise_~*~

As it turned out, Kaede had made one of her especially delicious stews for lunch. In addition to that, they also ate an assorted amount of ramen, some homemade lunch boxes Kagome's mom had sent, as well as a few dishes sent by some of the local villagers who had heard that it was Kagome's birthday.

Now that they were stuffed from their meal, the group members each gave the gift they had gotten for their precious Kagome. Though she thought herself useless and a burden most of the time, all of her companions—whether a certain someone admitted it or not—knew she was the glue that held their little misfit family together. Kagome opened each one and paid the proper thanks to the respective person. From Miroku she received sacred beads to help her focus her spiritual energy. Sango gave her a set of daggers with a promise to teach her how to manage close-range attacks and some wonderful smelling perfume Kagome assumed she bought in the market. Shippo gave her a bouquet of handpicked wildflowers and a drawing of their whole group. Kaede gave her a sturdier bow and blessed arrows. Inuyasha gave her a modified kimono made out of the fur of the fire rat that looked to be tailored to her and more similar in design to Sango's slayer's attire than to Inuyasha's signature garb. Kagome hugged them all then proceeded to look over the few trinkets and kimonos the villagers had sent for her, the more expensive of the gifts coming from a couple of the richer villagers whom the group had aided in the past.

~*~_One Hell of a Surprise_~*~

The small, makeshift family thoroughly enjoyed their day off, sitting around just talking and having fun.

In the midst of everything, Shippo suddenly broke the casual flow they'd had going by asking, "Is it almost two yet, Kagome?"

She glanced down at the watch she wore and replied, "Just a few more minutes."

They sat much more subdued until Kagome looked down again to find it a couple of seconds away from two o'clock. "Here it comes," she exclaimed with an excited smile.

"Happy 16th birthday!" they shouted in reply.

No sooner than the words left their mouths, every one of them felt the sudden change among them. An immense and foreign aura sprung up from nowhere, putting everyone on edge and on lookout for the source.

"So then everyone else senses it too," Miroku stated as his eyes shifted from side to side on full alert.

Inuyasha placed a hand on the hilt of Tetsusaiga. "Damn right. How the hell could anyone miss that?"

"Yes, I feel it as well," Sango confirmed.

Shippo trembled in fear, "Wha- wha- what is it?"

"I dunno, but whatever it is, I'll kill it!"

Kagome was the only one who didn't say anything, so the others looked to make sure she was alright.

"Kagome-chan?" Sango asked, slightly worried.

When she still didn't respond, the group truly became concerned. Inuyasha grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her gently, trying to snap her out of her trance-like state. "Kagome, what's wrong?"

Suddenly he was thrown back and when he looked again at Kagome, a wind was swirling about her pulsing body.

"Whatever the source of this aura is, it's doing something to Kagome!" Miroku shouted over the winds. "We have to stop it."

"Well, how are we supposed to do that when we don't even know where the damn thing is?"

"More importantly, why aren't we able to pinpoint its location?" Sango readied her hiraikotsu.

The winds lifted Kagome into an upright position, hovering a few inches off the ground. Suddenly a blinding light engulfed her and the group could only sit and wait to see what happened to her. They all covered their eyes with their arms, as protection from both the intense light and the harsh winds. The light had started off white before taking on the color of Kagome's usual pink aura. Now, however, it was transitioning to a deep violet color.

It seemed like an eternity before the effects subsided, but when the group laid eyes on Kagome, they could only stare in absolute awe and wonder. They only had a brief opportunity to observe her changed appearance before the momentarily suspended Kagome fell in an unconscious heap upon the ground.

It took a moment for everyone to come to their senses, but soon the group was crowded around her. Inuyasha was the last to venture over; her change was completely inconceivable to him and seemed to hit him the hardest. 'How can this be? This couldn't possibly be Naraku's doing…could it?' he frantically thought to himself as he slowly approached Kagome and the others.

"Inuyasha, is she what I think she is?" Miroku asked as he studied Kagome's new physique.

After a pause he replied, "Yeah…she is."


	3. My How Things Have Changed

**Thanks to all those who've reviewed…this story's gotten off to a great start reader-wise and I hope it stays that way.**

**Disclaimer: Sorry I forgot to say it earlier, but I do not own Inuyasha or anything in affiliation, except for perhaps a few episodes/movies, nor will I own any part of it at any point in my life, much less for the duration of this fanfic.**

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Kagome came-to with her friends gathered in a circle around her, staring at her with wide-eyed wonder and curiosity. What, had they never seen her unconscious before? She was sure they were worried, but what was with the bewildered look plastered on all their faces?

She propped herself up on her elbows. She felt…different somehow. Everything just seemed more intense than usual.

"Why are all of you looking at me like that?" she demanded. "Is there something wrong?" She sat up the rest of the way and looked at her friends anxiously, wanting to know what had them so startled.

She absentmindedly went to scratch an annoying itch on her arm, but somehow managed to cut herself. "Oh!" She looked at the place in question to find a small trickle of blood leaking out. "How'd I manage that?"

No one was quite sure how to explain everything to Kagome, so Inuyasha being the blunt one, said it straight up, hoping she'd catch it. "You just used too much force with your claws, is all. You'll have to learn to be more careful."

"What do you mean cla-" she broke off mid-word as she brought her hand to her face and examined it. She did indeed have long, sharp, thick, claw-like nails jutting out from her fingertips. "What the…what happened to my nails?"

"Your nails aren't the only things that changed, Kagome," Sango informed her. She gave her ear a tug, hoping Kagome would get the idea. It took her a moment before she cautiously lifted her hands to the top of her head, feeling around for anything out of the ordinary. When she didn't find a furry little appendage on her head or anything of the sort, she breathed a sigh of relief, but was also still confused. She ran her hands to where her normal little human ears had been, but found herself touching what she could only think of as a pointed elf-like ear. At least those wouldn't stick out as bad when she had to go back home. It was as if the thought of home made her snap out of her semi-calm state.

Kagome suddenly jumped up staring at her outstretched, newly clawed hands. "Wha- what's happened to me?" she asked quietly, before adding more desperately while looking up at her friends, "What else has changed?" Miroku was gawking quite obviously, his eyes switching between her legs and chest; Inuyasha was as well, but much less noticeably since he did have _some_ decency, unlike the lecherous monk. Sango on the other hand looked like she couldn't decide between a look of shock or one of pure horror at what she saw.

Kagome looked down to determine what all the fuss was about; it seemed to her that her transformation had made her mature somewhat and grow slightly taller, making her already short skirt reveal even more leg and her top shorter and tighter; her already indecent appearance by the standards of the Feudal Era, was twice as bad now. She blushed a deep shade of pink and hurriedly and as modestly as possible sunk to the ground near Sango and as far away from the guys as she could without possibly offending them.

After a brief and slightly awkward pause Inuyasha commanded, "Wench, you are definitely not wearing that uniform anymore." He had managed to hit Miroku over the head to end his staring sometime during his demand.

His comment only made Kagome blush harder and become more self-conscious about her new appearance that she had yet to see. "No argument there," she muttered.

Inuyasha removed his haori and tossed it in her direction. "Here. Wear this until we get you something else."

Kagome slipped on the garment gratefully, but it didn't do much to cover her legs. It was a good thing the villagers gave her those kimonos for her birthday, she was going to need some more modest clothing. She didn't need two reasons to stick out. Kagome took a deep, calming breath so as not to let the situation get the best of her. She put up a rather stable exterior, but on the inside her mind was racing and in full panic mode.

"So, what else has changed?"

Miroku regained his composure and with a crooked smile started off smoothly, "Well, Kagome, if I da-"

"Besides _that_," she quickly interrupted, fearing what direction that was headed in.

"Well, your eyes are a beautiful emerald green, if that's any consolation," Sango answered, trying her best to stay upbeat. "and your hair has a nice blue sheen to it. Other than that and what's already been covered, you've just…matured slightly."

"Oh, is that all?" That's when she lost it. "What's happened to me? What the hell _am_ I? How am I supposed to explain this to my mother?" The last thought drove her to tears and she took off running to Kaede's hut.

Inuyasha understood that it was a lot for the girl to handle. Hell it was a huge shock to the rest of them too, but he couldn't help but wonder, "Is she that repulsed by _me_?" Inuyasha didn't realize he'd whispered that out loud. All the monk and the demon-slayer did to acknowledge it was share a knowing and somewhat sad look.

**~*~_One Hell of a Surprise_~*~**

Kagome got to the hut way faster than she thought she should have. "Oh yeah, I guess my abilities have changed now too." She fell to her knees in the middle of the hut, sobbing about how quickly the day had changed.

She cried for a good twenty minutes before she finally calmed down and decided that bawling about it solved nothing. "I wonder where Kaede-sama is…" Kagome thought to herself. Kaede had wandered off somewhere after the presents had all been opened. Kagome had assumed she was tired and came back to her hut, but a quick look around proved it to be untrue.

Kagome walked over to all of her presents, picked out one of the simpler kimonos she'd gotten earlier that day, and stepped into the back room to change. She slipped off her old, virtuously useless school uniform and put on the kimono. She'd only worn a traditional kimono a few times in her life, so it felt strange for her to be wearing one; she was also pretty self-conscious, since she had no idea what she looked like in it, especially with her new appearance.

Kagome sped to the outskirts of the village, not wanting any of the villagers to see her until they figured out what was going on, before slowing back down to a walk again. She saw her friends sitting right where she'd left them half an hour ago. Inuyasha was the first to notice her approaching, but soon they were all looking in her direction, mouths slightly agape. They couldn't believe how much the dark green kimono with silver vine designs and obi accentuated her new physique.

"Wow, Kagome. You look gorgeous," Sango complimented her, causing her to blush before she took up her previous spot next to her on the ground.

Shippo came up to her and gave her a once over with his nose. "You definitely smell different," he commented while plopping down next to her, "but you're still my mama." He smiled up at her and her heart melted.

"Thanks Shippo. That means a lot to me." She looked up at Inuyasha who was no longer looking at her. "So, Inuyasha…can you tell me exactly what I've become?"

He glanced at her briefly from the corner of his eye, but returned his gaze to whatever far off object that had supposedly captured his attention. "Yeah, you're an inu-hanyou…just like me."

Kagome's ears instinctively twitched in response to the sadness dripping from his voice. 'On no,' she thought to herself, 'he doesn't like me this way.'

"This is a most strange development, Lady Kagome," Miroku piped in. "We all felt a strange presence just before your change, but I've determined that it was _your_ aura—your _new_ aura," he amended, "swirling out of you that we felt. In other words, I don't believe an external force is responsible for your transformation."

Kagome glanced off in the direction of the well, longing for its refuge. "I think it's best I go home and talk to my mother. Maybe she can tell me why this has happened." She looked at Inuyasha, wishing she could ask him to come with her; it would be so much easier if he did, but she just couldn't ask. She bit her lip, not even thinking about the possibility that she had acquired fangs, effectively cutting her lip. She mentally cursed and sucked the offended flesh into her mouth, more mindful of her sharpened teeth this time around. Maybe she needed some time away from everyone anyway. "I'll be back as soon as I can." She took off toward the well without a second glance. She had no idea how this had happened, or if her mother would be any help, but she hoped she would.

~*~_One Hell of a Surprise_~*~

"Inuyasha, you should go with her. It would be easier for her to face her mother if you did," Sango advised him.

"Why because _I'm_ a hanyou?" he asked bitterly.

"Well, having someone to relate to would certainly help, but mainly it's because she could really use a friend right now."

"It doesn't matter. If she wanted me to come then she would've asked me."

"Don't be so stupid, Inuyasha," Miroku admonished him wisely. "Kagome, obviously wanted you to accompany her, but with the way you spoke to her earlier she didn't think you'd want to."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that when she asked you what she had transformed into, you responded so solemnly, as if it sickened you that she too is an half-demon."

"_She's_ the one who's sickened by it!" he harshly defended. "You saw how she reacted earlier! She's repulsed by the very idea. Why should she want me coming along with her when I'm just a dirty hanyou, too?"

"Inuyasha, you're such an idiot."

Inuyasha whacked Shippo on the head. "Stay out of it runt!"

Sango came to his rescue, "I have to agree with Shippo. You're being stubborn, as usual. If Kagome found you repulsive, for that matter if any of us did, why would be still be hanging around you?"

"The jewel shards and Naraku," was his lame comeback

"There's more to it that that and deep down you know it. You're the only one that tries to hide behind those pitiful excuses. If that were all we were here for, we wouldn't have to be friendly towards you, but we are because we _are_ your friends. Now go after Kagome if you care about her at all…unless of course _you're_ just in it for the jewel shards." Miroku knew he'd hit a sensitive spot with that one and hoped it would compel Inuyasha to follow Kagome. "Come on Sango, let's go back to Kaede's and inform her of the recent developments."

As Miroku, Sango, and Shippo walked off towards the village, Inuyasha hmmphed loud enough for them to hear and crossed his arms obstinately. Once they were out of sight and earshot, however, he bounded off towards the well and leapt inside.

**~*~_One Hell of a Surprise_~*~**

The others arrived back at Kaede's empty hut, where she was making tea.

"Do you think he went?" Shippo asked innocently

Miroku ruffled his head. "Undoubtedly."

"He is rather predictable, you know," Sango added with a knowing smile.

Kaede had no idea what had happened this time, but from the conversation it was obvious Inuyasha was being his usual dense self. The three adults settled down with tea, so Sango and Miroku could fill Kaede in on what she'd missed while Shippou drew pictures in the corner.


	4. Whatever Could the Reasons Be?

**This chapters a lot of background type information, so bear with me. While it's interesting, there's not a lot of action.**

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Kagome had intended to go straight inside to confront her mother about this changing into a half-demon business, but when she arrived on her side of the well and climbed out into the well-house, she found she just couldn't do it yet. Not only was she not emotionally strong enough, she was so overwhelmed by the now intense smells she encountered once she passed through the well, that she just couldn't think straight. She'd adjusted to the natural scents in the Feudal Era gradually and quite easily, but in modern-day Tokyo, the air was just so polluted in comparison that her powerful nose was assaulted.

She tucked herself into a dark corner of the well-house to wait for her thoughts to return to her. Maybe then she could formulate some sort of plan for breaking the news to her mom and figure out the questions she should ask her.

"Oh, I wish Inuyasha was here," she mumbled to herself, once again on the verge of tears.

Kagome tucked her knees against her chest, resting her arms on top of them. She buried her face in them hoping to drown out some of the scents.

She wasn't sure how long she sat like that, but it seemed like an eternity. The smells were becoming more bearable, but they were still overwhelming her poor nose.

"I can't keep stalling for much longer…" Kagome mumbled into her arms. "I've got to tell her." She began running through ways she could possibly use to break the news to her mother. Most of the opening lines she came up with were completely lame.

"Yeah that'll totally work," she sarcastically uttered to herself. "Hey mom, you know how you love Inuyasha's dog ears so much? Well, guest what, now there's a chance your grandchildren will have them one day!" The sarcasm of her twisted joke immediately wore off as thoughts of who she could make little dog-eared children with flitted into her mind. Her face turned beat red and she could feel the heat spread all the way to the tips of her ears. God she was as bad as Miroku!

Suddenly Kagome sensed a shift in the environment. Her nose picked up a scent previously foreign to her era. It smelled much more natural than anything she'd smelled since she arrived here. Her ears flicked in response to a faint sound from around the well. Kagome's head jerked up just in time to see Inuyasha leap out of the well. Her eyes widened in shock and all her previous embarrassment flew out the window as her heart filled with joy at the thought that he had come after her.

As Inuyasha arrived in the well in Kagome's era, he knew that she was still in the well-house; he could smell her scent, strong and fresh, as well as old tears. He jumped out of the well and saw her face still tear-stained and Kagome in an almost fetal position, but looking straight at him though there'd hardly been any indication to his arrival.

Inuyasha asked worriedly, "Kagome?"

She looked at him a moment before flinging herself at him practically hysterical. "Oh Inuyasha, I just don't know how I'm going to break this to my family! I'm so glad you're here." He soothingly wrapped an arm around her slender waist.

"Don't worry, Kagome. Your mother will understand."

"How can you say that? No mom can be _that_ understanding!" she sobbed into his chest.

"Look at all we've been through this past year. It can't come as _that_ much of a shock, considering all she's seen," Inuyasha countered. "Besides she may actually know something about this."

He had a point. "I'm still nervous."

"If she's anything like you, then she'll accept you no matter what you are."

Kagome looked up into his eyes, her own eyes watering a bit, while squeezing him tighter. "Oh Inuyasha."

**~*~_One Hell of a Surprise_~*~**

After their tender moment, Inuyasha pep talked Kagome for a bit longer until she felt slightly more confident. He helped her up on shaky legs and guided her out of the well-house and across the courtyard to the door of her house. Kagome paused at the stoop before the sliding door, taking a deep, collecting breath. Inuyasha didn't try to rush her; he understood that she needed this.

She glanced up at Inuyasha, who questioned, "Ya ready, Kagome?"

She nodded her head once. She reached forward and slid the door open. They entered the house with Inuyasha following slightly behind Kagome.

As Kagome looked around her living room and the rest of her house, she noticed things in a whole new light. Her keen senses only enhanced what made the house her home. Her ears flicked at a noise from the kitchen, so Kagome headed in that direction, hoping it was her mother and not Grandpa or Souta. She wasn't disappointed as she peeked around the corner and spotted her mom standing over a sink full of soapy dishes.

Kagome stepped around the edge of the wall and onto the tiled flooring. "Okaasan…" she tried tentatively to get her mother's attention.

Mrs. Higurashi's posture straightened and her delicate hands paused from their labor. She looked over her shoulder at where she thought she'd heard her daughter's voice come from. "Oh it is you dear. We weren't expec-" her words cut off as her expression changed to surprise and she dropped the plate she still held in her hand onto the pile of dishes in the sink. The cacophony created by the dishes caused Inuyasha's ears to flatten, but it hurt Kagome's unaccustomed ears far worse.

Her mother turned the rest of the way around and took a few slow steps toward her child. "Kagome…what's happened to you?"

"Oh Mom!" Kagome cried as she ran to her mother and held onto her tightly. Mrs. Higurashi wrapped her arms securely around her.

"Kagome, shh…" her mother comforted. "Calm down and tell me what's happened." She led her daughter over to the table and set her down in a chair. As she sat in the chair next to her, she motioned for Inuyasha, who was barely visible around the corner, to do the same.

As Mrs. Higurashi took Kagome's hand in hers across the table, Kagome began to tell the story with a shaky voice. "I don't really know where I should start. Umm…basically when I got to the Feudal Era, there was a small celebration for me. Afterwards, Inuyasha, Miroku, Sango, Kirara, Shippo, and I went to relax in the shade. That's when it happened; we all sensed it. The wind picked up and then I blacked out. Maybe Inuyasha should tell this part…"

Inuyasha got a bit of a deer-in-the-headlights look to him, not having expected his sudden involvement in the conversation.

"Uh…" he clumsily began. "There's not much to it really. Everybody noticed something wasn't right with her. She looked almost like she was in a trance. The wind started whirling around and lifted her off the ground. Then she transformed into what she looks like now. The wind died and she fell on the ground unconscious."

"I woke up a few minutes later," Kagome continued. "We talked it over and Miroku said that he didn't think an outside force did this to me, so I came here to talk to you about it."

"Oh dear," her mother began rather calmly. "I should have known this day would come."

Inuyasha and Kagome exchanged extremely perplexed looks with one another.

"Kagome, Inuyasha, come with me."

Mrs. Higurashi led them outside and into their storage area for all the shrine's trinkets and family heirlooms. Standing up on the ladder, she scanned the top shelf until she found whatever it was she was looking for.

"Ah, here it is," she muttered to herself. She descended with a long rectangular box, which she crossed the room with and placed on a table.

"Kagome, there are some things you don't know about your father; things I should have told you long ago." She paused but when no one moved to speak she continued. "Higurashi Akira, the man who raised you, was not your biological father, Kimura Kisho was."

"What? Why haven't you told me this before?" Kagome demanded, shocked and somewhat angry.

"We thought it would be for the best, dear. We thought maybe you'd be able to live a more normal life."

"So Dad is really Souta's father, just not mine?"

"That's right, sweetheart, but-"

"Mom, how could you?" Kagome angrily sobbed. "How could you do that to Dad?" she backed away from her mother, hurt.

Inuyasha felt greatly out of place, like he was intruding on some private family matter, but he knew he couldn't leave Kagome.

"Honey, it's not what you think," Mrs. Higurashi defended, "Just let me explain."

Kagome sat down on a nearby bench, not sure what else the day had in store for her. Inuyasha joined her and tried to be as comforting as he could manage. Her mother sat on a small stool across from them, tenderly placing her hands on Kagome's knees.

"Kagome, I loved Souta's father and the man who's been a father to you as well, very much, but he wasn't my first love. I met your real father nearly eighteen years ago. We fell in love almost instantly. He had the most remarkable green eyes, actually the same color as you have now," she reminisced with a smile, "and silvery blue hair. It was a bit odd, but I just thought he died it until I found out what he really was.

"Anyways, after a few months of serious dating, we moved in together. So many people said we were moving too fast, but I knew it was the real deal. Shortly after that, he sat me down and told me he was a dog-demon. As it turns out, there's a small number of demons that have survived until now. Most of them spend their lives blending in with the humans, but some operate in an underground network trying to bring the demons back into power. We'll come back to that in a minute though.

"Needless to say, it all came as a bit of a shock to me, and I didn't speak to him for several days, taking refuge at a friend's house. Finally, he tracked me down, quite literally, and I realized that it didn't matter _what_ he was, because I still loved _who_ he was."

'That's definitely where Kagome gets it from,' Inuyasha thought fondly. He glanced over at Kagome, who looked like she was having trouble processing all of this.

Kagome's mother continued on with her story, "We made up and not too long after he asked me to be his mate, as I'm sure you know is the demon equivalent of a spouse. We lived very happily for about a year, then you were born, which only increased our euphoria. Though it was shocking, we saw it as a blessing that you didn't seem to be born with any demonic features; it would make it easier for you to blend into society.

"Things went well for about a year, with you maturing slightly faster than most children. That's when things started going wrong. You see he was a powerful demon and would have been a great commodity for the underground demons I told you about a minute ago. As the last known remaining member of the Kimura Inu-youkai tribe, they wanted him to aid in their demonic world conquest. He blatantly refused their 'offer', for he had accepted his place in the human dominated world.

"After that, the demons continually attacked our house and us, forcing us to move many times and try many different methods of evading them; but nothing worked. You father couldn't stand the idea of putting you and I in such danger, so he sent us away to this shrine, to stay with Grandpa. He said he was going to put an end to the fighting, and that he would come get us when it was over, but…he never came.

"All I can assume is that he died from the injuries he probably got from the battle. I've heard rumors supporting that theory, too."

Kagome looked at Inuyasha at this point, 'so my father died the same way yours did, Inuyasha.' She linked fingers with him, not sure what exactly urged her to be so bold, but knowing it had something to do with the connection she felt with him just now. Inuyasha blushed profusely, but didn't move to pull away.

"What I do know, though," her mother went on, "is that we haven't been bothered since and that I was completely devastated when so much time had passed and he still hadn't come back for me. In my heart, I knew he was gone, I could feel it. The only thing that kept me going was you." Mrs. Higurashi smiled affectionately at her daughter, then briefly at Inuyasha as well, reminded of her first love.

"I never thought I'd be able to love again, until I met Souta's father. I met him about a year after your father died. You and I were still living here and helping your grandfather take care of the shrine. Akira was a regular customer and we talked frequently. He asked me out once, but I was still so devastated, I declined. We were wonderful friends over the course of about two years and he was so great with you, I finally took him up on his offer. We dated casually for a while, and I never expected it to go as far as it did. After almost two years of dating, we were married. I knew your father would have wanted me to make the best life possible for you and I, so I knew it's what he would have wanted. Plus Akira made me happy and I cared for him deeply. About a year later Souta was born. Then when you were eleven, Akira got sick and died shortly after."

"Didn't he ever want to tell me he wasn't my real father, though?" Kagome asked.

"Oh, yes, yes. How could I have forgotten. After he proposed I told him everything, I felt I owed him that much; it was hard to convince him I was telling the truth at first, but eventually he believed me. We decided that it would be in your best interest not to tell you he wasn't actually you father. Unfortunately we didn't know you'd end up living a double life fighting evil demons in the Feudal Era."

Kagome sighed; this was just _so_ much to absorb in such a short time. Within about the last hour, she'd transformed into a half-demon, been told the man she'd _thought_ was her father for the past sixteen years of her life, actually wasn't, and that her real father was a powerful modern-day dog-demon, who'd been killed basically by a youkai mafia trying to protect her and her mother. To say the least, she was doing much better than any other sixteen-year-old girl would have done.

In the middle of reviewing this in her head, she had an epiphany. "Wait a minute…if I've been a half-demon all this time, why did I just now transform? I mean my guess would be something about the well, but that's been a whole year ago now."

"Hmm…that's a good point," Kagome's mother uselessly added.

Their attention was drawn to Inuyasha when he suddenly spoke; apparently his presence had been forgotten by the two. "Don't forget Kagome's a reincarnated miko…" Kagome cringed at the statement, which went unnoticed by Inuyasha, but not by Kagome's mother. 'How could I possibly forget I'm _her_ reincarnation,' she thought solemnly to herself. Inuyasha continued as though nothing had happened, for in his dense perception, nothing had. "I bet that's what's kept her demon powers sealed all this time, that and the Shikon Jewel."

Both women looked at him, amazed by his insight.

"Oh my gosh! Inuyasha you're brilliant!" Kagome exclaimed, despite her earlier thoughts.

"Bout time you noticed, wench," Inuyasha arrogantly retorted.

Mrs. Higurashi continued on as if that remark had never been made. "Yes, it makes perfect sense! Your miko and youkai sides kept each other balanced and therefore virtually dormant. Since your heart's so pure, your priestess powers kept the jewel purified."

"And then," Kagome picked up, "when Mistress Centipede pulled me through the well, my miko powers awakened in self-defense, plus the Jewel was taken from my body. That still doesn't explain why it took so long for my demon powers to catch up…" she concluded disappointedly.

All three pondered that for a moment before Inuyasha proclaimed his revelation. "Kagome, your miko powers came out full force and it took you a while to get the hang of them. They were probably keeping your demon side purified, well sorta; and even if that's not why, if it had of come out, you probably wouldn't have been able to handle it. Since your miko powers are stable now, maybe that's why your demon form came out."

"I guess that makes sense," Kagome agreed, still thinking it all over. "I suppose there's no way to know for certain anyways." She glanced off to the side where her eyes found the box from earlier.

"Hey mom," she began, "what's in that box you got down earlier?"

Mrs. Higurashi, who had been deep in thought, started slightly. "What's that dear?" she asked absentmindedly, but then followed her daughter's gaze. "Oh yes, of course. I almost forgot." She walked over to the box and motioned for Kagome and Inuyasha to gather around the table.

"This Kagome," she said as she untied the string securing the box and removed the lid, "is one of your father's swords." She lifted it carefully from the box and held it out to Kagome.

"I don't know how much use it will be to you yet, but perhaps Inuyasha can help you master both your own powers and those of the sword."

As Kagome reached out to the sword, she pulsed; if she would have taken the time to notice, she would have observed the sword doing the same.

"It recognizes your blood, dear," Kagome's mother explained. "It accepts you."

Kagome's eyes shifted to her mother momentarily, signaling to her that her explanation had been heard. She grasped the sword's sheath with her left hand, lifting it out of its box. She pulsed again. She grabbed its hilt and slowly began to slide it out of its encasing. Pulse. The sword's full length was revealed as she lowered her left hand down by her side, examining the blade. It was beautiful. It didn't have the seemingly rusty and useless appearance that camouflaged Tetsusaiga; it simply shone. It was also slightly larger than Tetsusaiga in its untransformed form.

'I wonder if it transforms as well?' Kagome mused to herself.

"You might want to return it to its sheath for now, Kagome," Mrs. Higurashi advised. Kagome did as she was told, all the while wondering why. "As Inuyasha can probably confirm, that sword emits a distinct aura when outside its casing. It will undoubtedly attract the attentions of any remaining youkai in this era. It would probably be best for the two of you to return to Inuyasha's time with the sword for now. I'm sure your friends are worrying about you anyways," she added with a warm smile.

"I guess you're probably right. Thanks for everything mom!" Kagome hugged her mother fiercely, still clutching her new sword in one hand. "I'm just going to run upstairs really quick for a few supplies."

Kagome dashed into the house, still not used to her new speed. She set out a couple of more practical outfits, before heading to use the bathroom—Kami did she miss indoor plumbing. As she walked into the room, she caught sight of herself in the mirror and stopped dead in her tracks. Her hair had grown straighter and slightly longer, with a blue sheen that intensified as it neared the tips. Her eyes were now a startling shade of green and her complexion had smoothed out perfectly, apparently pimples were not something demons had to worry about. Throw in the traditional kimono and she felt she was looking at a completely different person staring back at her.

After a moment she turned and dashed back downstairs, all bathroom needs forgotten as her thoughts focused on getting the hell away from any mirrors for a while.

"I'll come back again soon!" she called out to her mom, as she and Inuyasha headed for the well.


	5. Troubles of a Half Demon

**Last Time:**

As Kagome reached out to the sword, she pulsed; if she would have taken the time to notice, she would have observed the sword doing the same.

"It recognizes your blood, dear," Kagome's mother explained. "It accepts you."

Kagome's eyes shifted to her mother momentarily, signaling to her that her explanation had been heard. She grasped the sword's sheath with her left hand, lifting it out of its box. She pulsed again. She grabbed its hilt and slowly began to slide it out of its encasing. Pulse. The sword's full length was revealed as she lowered her left hand down by her side, examining the blade. It was beautiful. It didn't have the seemingly rusty and useless appearance that camouflaged Tetsusaiga; it simply shone. It was also slightly larger than Tetsusaiga in its untransformed form.

'I wonder if it transforms as well?' Kagome mused to herself.

"You might want to return it to its sheath for now, Kagome," Mrs. Higurashi advised. Kagome did as she was told, all the while wondering why. "As Inuyasha can probably confirm, that sword emits a distinct aura when outside its casing. It will undoubtedly attract the attentions of any remaining youkai in this era. It would probably be best for the two of you to return to Inuyasha's time with the sword for now. I'm sure your friends are worrying about you anyways," she added with a warm smile.

**~*~_One Hell of a Surprise_~*~**

A smirk crawled across the face of an unknown figure. "So the girl has been reunited with daddy's old sword, has she...excellent."

* * *

Kagome and Inuyasha passed through the well—Kagome feeling more light-hearted since the talk with her mother and Inuyasha growing more somber as they crossed over to his era—to find their friends sitting on the edge of the well clearing, awaiting their return. Shippo raced toward Kagome, being the naïve child that he was, while Miroku and Sango only stood up and took a few tentative steps. When Kagome fully embraced the kit with a small giggle escaping her lips, their bodies visibly relaxed and things carried on almost normally.

While hugging and reassuring the kit, Kagome was taking in huge sniffs, her nose thoroughly enjoying the fresh air…that was getting fresher? She now realized that there had been a strange twang in the air at first, which her inexperienced nose had been unable to detect until it was leaving.

"Inuyasha, what was that smell that just went away?" Kagome asked curiously, still taking in lots of air, clinging to the last bit of the lingering scent.

Inuyasha had been in deep thought and oddly silent until that moment, so he responded without fully thinking things through. "Anxiety."

"Oh…" She committed it to memory for future reference. Then the scent came back again, full strong…no this time it was slightly different. It seemed to be emanating from around Miroku and Sango, who happened to look a bit twitchy.

"What about that one?" she asked again, though she thought she already knew the answer.

"Nervousness," he replied, only consciously this time.

"Oh, I see," was her unintelligent response as she noted the slight difference between the two emotions. 'Has Inuyasha always been able to read us that easily?' she wondered before returning her attention back to the situation at hand.

"So what're you two so nervous about?" Sango and Miroku's spasmodic mannerisms suddenly ceased.

"Us…nervous?" Miroku sheepishly replied.

"Yes, come on. Don't try to cover it up. My nose knows," Kagome quipped back, tapping her nose with her index finger for emphasis while enjoying her little joke.

Sango took over this time. "Well you see, we were nervous because you found out we'd been feeling anxious. We didn't want you to get the wrong idea. We just weren't sure if you were feeling better about everything and we didn't want to upset you."

"Well, I'm not exactly what you'd call fine, but I do feel slightly better after talking with my mom. I found out quite a lot, actually." As Kagome told the others about what she and Inuyasha had learned from her mother, Inuyasha continued to remain quiet and thoughtful, only actually hearing bits and pieces of the retelling.

"And that's when she gave me this, my father's old sword!" she exclaimed as she finished the tale, showing the heirloom to Sango, Miroku, and Shippo for emphasis.

"That looks so cool, Kagome!" Shippo shouted his excitement. Kagome merely chuckled in response.

"Kagome," Inuyasha finally interjected. Kagome looked at him. "Can we uh…talk for a minute?" he asked, unsure of exactly what he would say if she agreed.

"Yeah, sure Inuyasha," Kagome replied with a smile. She stood up—everyone except for Inuyasha, who had merely settled for leaning against a tree, had sat down during Kagome's story—and said, "Let's go for a walk."

He nodded and left for the forest as she trailed along behind him. Neither spoke for a while until finally Inuyasha stopped and turned to face her. To his disappointment, the words hadn't just hit him, as he had hoped. He knew _what_ he wanted to say, he just didn't know _how_ to say it.

Kagome could smell that same nervous scent from earlier coming off Inuyasha, so she thought she'd better break the ice. "So you've been pretty quiet since we got back. Want to tell me what's been on your mind?"

He remained silent for a moment before crossing his arms. "You know things are gonna be a lot different now, for all of us, but mostly you."

"Yeah, I kinda figured that," Kagome said, sarcasm tingeing her voice.

"Kagome, I'm being serious here!" Kagome was needless to say somewhat taken aback by his sudden change in demeanor. Inuyasha, on the other hand could no longer contain all the thoughts that had been plaguing him over the last hour. "Things are gonna be a lot harder for you now. You'll be treated…differently."

"I know Inuyasha, but incase you haven't noticed, I've always been treated differently here."

"Yeah, but you're a half-demon now; you've seen the way they're treated by humans and demons alike. Things may be a little better for you because you don't have ears like mine, but humans will still know you're different from them. Demons will be able to smell you're not pure. Have you forgotten Jinenji? Or what happened on Hourai Island?"

Kagome couldn't remember the last time Inuyasha had said so much at once. "No, I haven't," Kagome replied, her voice soft. "Nor have I forgotten what's been done to you, Inuyasha. That's why you'll just have to train me so I can be strong." Kagome closed the distance between them, feeling that if she just held him everything would be okay; that she could somehow take his pain away. She wrapped her arms around his waist and added in a whisper she knew he'd hear, "Besides, if it's too much for me, I know you'll be there to protect me." Inuyasha slowly lifted his arms to encircle her and she nuzzled deeper into his chest. He rested his chin lightly on her head. She felt completely enveloped by his scent, which she had failed to truly notice before now. It smelled so natural, like the very woods they stood in, but there was something else too, something she couldn't quite decipher just yet.

They both stepped out of the embrace and looked at one another. "Should we get back to the others, now?" Kagome suggested.

Inuyasha, however did not agree. "Not yet, there's still more you should know."

"Okay, let's sit…up there." She pointed toward a branch hanging above them before attempting to jump for it. Her newfound hanyou powers did not kick in on their own as much as she had hoped. She could tell she would fall short, until a strong arm grabbed her by the waist and took her the rest of the way to the branch, safely settling them there.

"Thanks," she said while blushing at her failure.

"Keh. It'll probably take a little while for your powers to completely awaken. I've never met another half-demon in your situation, but normally our powers strengthen as we age."

Kagome jokingly responded, "As if being a priestess who traveled back and forth over five hundred years wasn't strange enough."

Inuyasha's ears flattened back against his head, "It's not funny, Kagome. Do you realize the only village we'll be welcome in now is probably this one? It was hard enough before with one half-demon, two will be almost impossible."

"I know this is a big change, and it will definitely take some getting used to, but if this is who I am, who I'm mean to be, then I don't regret this happening to me Inuyasha, do you?" He was silent for a minute and Kagome took it as a yes. "Oh, I see." Her eyes filled to the brim with tears, threatening to spill over any second.

"Dammit Kagome, don't cry! That's not what I meant. It's not 'cause you're a half-demon, it's all the stuff you're gonna have to go through now; you shouldn't have to experience those sorta things."

Now her sadness morphed into anger, as it often did when Inuyasha was concerned. "Inuyasha, I'll be fine! We've always gotten by before; we'll manage just fine now, too. You don't like villages anyway, so I don't see why you even care."

"Maybe we should just go back to the others," he said, changing his mind. The conversation had not gone at all like he'd hoped; it would be best just to try again some other time.

"Alright, whatever you want."

Inuyasha jumped from their perch with well-practiced grace and agility, then looked expectantly up at Kagome.

"You don't expect me to jump from way up here, do you?" she asked, sounding slightly panicked.

"Of course, wench. You're a hanyou now, so what's the problem?" he retaliated with a smirk.

Kagome made a disconcerted sound while nervously eyeing the ground. After a moment she took a tentative leap, which involved a lot of flailing, and resulted in her briefly landing on her feet before falling on her butt.

"Oww…" she whined as she rubbed the offended body part.

Inuyasha laughed before lifting her up and setting her on her feet.

"I guess we should start on some basics tomorrow, wench."

"Whatever you say, Inuyasha. Hmm…I think I'll make ramen for dinner tonight."

**~*~_One Hell of a Surprise_~*~**

As the two half-demons returned to their friends they were immediately assaulted by the words of a pervert.

"So, what have you two been _talking_ about all this time?" Miroku inquired oh-so-innocently.

Inuyasha landed a rough punch to his head, while Sango reprimanded, "Today's been a long day, Houshi. Now is not the time."

Kagome just sighed and shook her head. At least some things never change.

**~*~_One Hell of a Surprise_~*~**

**Present-day Tokyo:**

Kagome's mother stood in the kitchen washing dishes, thinking over everything she had talked about with her daughter. If only she had known the day was fast approaching, she would have told her sooner. She sighed as she put a stack of plates in the cabinet. 'If only you were still alive Kisho, things would be so much easier on our precious Kagome.' She returned to her place at the sink, resuming her work, as she gazed out at the Goshinboku. As she did a strange sight caught her attention. She looked closely and swore she saw a glimpse of black against all the green, but then it was gone. Did she just imagine that? She sure hoped so, but she didn't like the feeling it gave her.

* * *

**A/N: I know I know, Inuyasha is such a pessimist. **

**Hourai Island: the setting of the 4th Inuyasha movie.**


	6. Training Part I

There's always that thin line between light sleep and consciousness; with a twitch Kagome crossed it. A shuffling noise nearby reached her awareness and she stirred slightly.

"It's about time you woke up, wench. Did you already forget what I told you yesterday?"

Kagome's eyes blinked open slowly before she stretched out her stiff body. Her gaze eventually focused on Inuyasha, who stood with arms crossed in the doorway.

"What are you talking about, Inuyasha? What's the hurry?"

"I told you. We're training today, remember?"

"Training?" Kagome repeated, her eyebrows drawn together in seemingly intense thought.

Inuyasha insultingly sounded it out for her, "Yes, stupid. Train-ing."

Kagome sleepily rubbed her eyes and stretched again, wincing as her aching body moved. "Ah…too sore. Maybe tomorrow."

"Sore? What the hell do you have to be sore about?"

"I dunno. What do you care anyway?"

"Keh…I guess the change must have been rough on your body." Kagome's eyes widened in remembrance as she ran her hands over the points of her ears. "What, don't tell me you forgot already? Stupid woman," Inuyasha chastised lightly.

She narrowed her eyes in his direction. "Well, it's not everyday someone suddenly becomes a half-demon, Inuyasha. It's going to take a bit of getting used to."

"I don't care how sore you are, I don't wanna wait on your training. Eat something so we can get started."

"Fine, fine," Kagome muttered. She crawled over to her big yellow backpack—which she realized was probably a rather comical thing for a hanyou to be carrying—and dug out a couple of granola bars. She ate them speedily even though she wasn't exactly hungry. She looked up at Inuyasha expectantly.

"What?" he grunted defensively.

"Leave already. I need to get dressed. I thought you were in this huge hurry to get training and now you're dawdling about."

"Keh."

Kagome waited just a moment to make sure the coast was clear before going to look through the clothes she was now forced to wear since her transformation. She flipped through many kimonos but couldn't find a single thing suitable for rigorous training. In her hurry to leave yesterday she'd left the clothes she picked out on her bed; she would need to return home soon to retrieve them. Ah, the fire rat. She went to find it amongst the gifts her friends had given her, only to find that it had been so properly tailored, it wouldn't work with her transformed body. While it still fit, it would be too snug to move around in comfortably. "What am I supposed to do now?" she wondered out loud to herself. She looked about the hut for a minute before an idea struck her. She poked her head outside the shelter and looked around for Kaede. When she spotted her she shouted out, "Kaede-sama, can I speak to you for a minute?" The old woman nodded before walking over to her hut. Kagome stepped to the side so she could enter.

"What is it, child?" Kaede asked, clearly concerned.

"Well…I was wondering if I could borrow some robes temporarily. I looked through the villagers gifts but there was nothing I could train in. Inuyasha wants to get started right away, so I don't know what else to do."

Kaede understood how Kagome felt about the miko robes, so she knew she must be really desperate. "Of course you may. I'll go fetch some." She disappeared into the back room for a minute and returned with a red and white pile of clothing. "Here you are."

"Thank you, Kaede-sama." Kagome smiled slightly as she took the robes.

"You are very welcome, Kagome." The old miko then left Kagome to change.

Kagome quickly donned the clothes and even went so far as to tie her hair back with the ribbon, though she put it in a high pony-tail much like Sango's. She wasn't keen on the idea of wearing the clothes that made her look that much more like Kikyo, but she figured her newly changed appearance would be enough to counteract it. The irony of a half-demon wearing miko robes was not lost on her. She looked between her father's sword and her bow and arrows, unsure which she should take. Then she recalled Inuyasha had mentioned teaching her the basics, which she was sure did not include weaponry. She opted to leave both in the hut, assuring herself that she would be with Inuyasha if any trouble arose and she could easily return for them later if they got that far in her training.

Inuyasha was waiting for her in the closest tree to the hut. She smiled at him before calling out, "I'm ready!"

He leapt down from the tree and, while striding over to her, threw back, "Bout time wench. I thought I'd be waiting around all morning."

"This was your idea so if you're making me do this, don't be complaining so much!"

"Whatever. You'll thank me for this later." He turned his back to her and headed off into the trees. "Let's go."

Kagome trudged after him silently seething to herself. Despite the closeness her transformation had brought them the day before they were right back to their old pointlessly fighting selves. She let out an exasperated sigh.

"Alright, this ought to be good enough," Inuyasha decided out loud while stopping in a clearing. "Today we'll just get you used to your new senses and abilities. Nothin' too special."

"Say Inuyasha? Why are you so willing to take time off from our hunt for the jewel shards? You're usually so eager to get going by now."

He looked at her for a moment before answering. "Keh, what are you stupid? I'm not about to take you anywhere near demons until you can handle yourself better. We'll be leaving in a day or two though so you better work hard."

"Aye, aye, mon-capitaine," Kagome mock saluted Inuyasha.

"What the fuck are you going on about?" He never would get used to her and the weird-ass things people in her era said.

Kagome sighed in return as her sarcastic reply flew right over his head. "Forget it. Let's just get started."

"You'll be able to move a lot faster now, but you're gonna have to get used to it. It'll be harder to watch out for trees and stuff. So, first off, race me to the river and try not to hurt yourself." Inuyasha dashed off into the forest leaving Kagome gawking after him.

"Inuyasha! Get back here!" She could no longer see him, so she figured if she was going to have any chance finding the river she'd better get going so she could try and follow him.

At first the dense trees scared her, so she wouldn't push herself much faster than she ran when she was human. However, she knew Inuyasha would be way ahead of her if she didn't pick up the pace. Plus, wasn't the point of the exercise to help her learn how to maneuver? Besides she was interested to see _just_ how fast she could run now. She slowly increased her speed doing her best to avoid the trees that rapidly sprung up in her path. She bumped her shoulder into several, but was able to keep going without stopping. Then she ran smack into one, falling down to the ground. It didn't hurt as much as she had expected. Mostly she just couldn't believe that she'd actually done that.

Suddenly Inuyasha flitted in beside her. "What'd I tell you about not hurting yourself?" he asked as his eyes combed her for injuries. He smirked, "Ya know, you're really slow." Then he dashed off again.

Kagome growled; she was mildly surprised by the fact that it was an _actual_ growl. She took off after him, still watching for trees but worrying about them less. Right then all she cared about was catching up to Inuyasha's cocky ass. How he provoked her sometimes!

The trees surrounding her were a blur, but she couldn't bring herself to be as worried about that fact as she should have been. She couldn't see Inuyasha, but she could smell him…or at least she thought she could. If not then she was following the wrong scent; she suspected she wasn't though because she was beginning to smell water and the twinge of fish. As she ran further, she began to hear the sound of the river. She smiled to herself. Inuyasha wasn't a half-bad trainer.

Suddenly she broke through the trees and found herself at the water's edge. She looked around, but couldn't spot Inuyasha anywhere. His scent didn't lead anywhere else, so she couldn't imagine where he could have gone. She bent down to cup some water up to her mouth to drink. Despite her newfound canine features, she wasn't about to stoop so low as to lap it up like a dog, nor could she recall ever seeing Inuyasha do anything of the sort. An he was about as uncouth as it got.

She was just bending down for another drink when something shoved her from behind, throwing her off balance. Arms flailing wildly, she fell into the river and was completely soaked. She emerged gasping, drenched, and beyond pissed to find Inuyasha sitting smugly on his haunches just behind where she'd been previously perched.

"Inuyasha, what on earth did you do that for?"

"Quit your bitching, woman. Had to teach you never to let your guard down, didn't I."

"Ooh, Inuyasha, the things you do sometimes…" Her bitter scowl slowly evolved into a smirk as she crossed her arms over her chest. Inuyasha would have found it comical since she was still standing thigh-deep in water and dripping profusely, save for the anxious feeling it gave him; just what was she up to? "Of course I suppose since it was for my training I can't be too angry with you can I?" she asked a little too innocently. "It did teach me a very important lesson…" She mentally added to herself, '…and now I'm going to teach you one.'

Inuyasha didn't quite know what happened. One minute Kagome was saying odd things while still standing in the water, the next minute everything made a lot more sense as she knocked him to the ground sufficiently soaking him in return. Forgetting to even blush at the fact that her body momentarily covered his, Inuyasha flipped them over, picked up Kagome, and proceeded to jump into the river, again dunking her into the water. What he wasn't expecting was when Kagome pulled him under with her. He was going to have to start watching out for that newfound strength of hers. It wasn't until they'd disentangled themselves in the shallows of the river that he noticed a very interesting fact. She was wearing a white haori, which had become rather translucent during their escapades. At least he had the courtesy to blush.

* * *

**Alright, so there's the end of the re-write. New chapter up shortly!**


	7. Training Part II

**So I know it's been a TERRIBLY long time since I last updated, but I'm back and I just got through rewriting all the chapters up until this point of the story. While they weren't huge changes, some details may be different so if you have the time I recommend going back through (not to mention it's a good refresher). Thanks to everyone who stuck around and also for all the wonderful reviews I received in the past (if you are confused I recently changed my pen name from Inu Girl For Life)**

* * *

Kagome giggled quietly. She and Inuyasha hardly ever played like that, he was always being so stupid or picking a fight with her; actually those things usually went hand in hand. It was refreshing not seeing him so serious all the time. She realized he'd stopped moving and had an intense blush on his face. He immediately looked away from her, but kept cutting his eyes her direction every so often.

What on earth? She looked down only to have a matching blush soon appear on her face. "Eeeek!" She covered herself in a flash, sinking as far into the water as she could. Inuyasha took off his haori and tossed it in her direction. Kagome caught it effortlessly, waded into shallower water, and pulled it over her body. "Th-thanks," she stuttered due to her immense embarrassment.

"Keh," came his usual reply. He stood up out of the water, and Kagome could tell from his expression that he was back to being all business—not that she minded after the awkward situation that just occurred.

She decided to break the uncomfortable silence. "So how'd I do?" she inquired.

Inuyasha, ever grateful to her perception to his discomfort, pondered her question for a moment. "Well, at first, pretty rotten…" Upon seeing the glare forming on Kagome's face, he hurriedly finished his thought, "But once you loosened up a bit, you did pretty damn good I guess."

"You're just saying that," Kagome sighed out of disappointment in herself more than anger at Inuyasha.

"No, I'm not! You sniffed me out didn't you? You followed the smell of the river? Those are the only ways you could have found me. It'll come naturally in no time so quit looking so depressed."

"I don't look depressed! Geez, can we go back and work on something else already?" Kagome half pleaded. She hated how everything always turned into a fight with them.

Inuyasha picked up Tetsusaiga from where he'd discarded it earlier and headed into the forest once more, walking this time. "We'll go back to the clearing and work on your defenses. Now maybe I won't have to swoop in and save your ass all the time."

Kagome was about to retort when she noticed the smirk on his face, so she just settled for, "Whatever."

Inuyasha looked over at her as they walked. She was soaking wet and he did feel a little bad about that, but it was a fairly warm day and their little river tryst had been worth it. He did wonder though why she'd chosen the priestess robes instead of wearing the fire rat robe he'd given her. Maybe she didn't like it.

Kagome, still self-conscious about her now translucent robes practically exposing her, felt his gaze on her. "What?!" she snapped, gathering his haori a little tighter around her body.

"I was just wondering why you wore those robes instead of the fire rat ones I got you. They'd be a lot better for training ya know." He tried to play off his hurt, masking it under the pretenses of practicality.

"Oh yeah, I meant to mention that to you. Since they were so tailored they're a bit snug with my transformation, and since none of the other kimonos I got were appropriate I just thought I'd borrow these. If it's possible we'll need to get the fire rat robes retailored at some point. Who did them anyway?"

Inuyasha could only shake his head…sometimes he wondered about her and how much she could ramble. "Totosai made them. He made mine, too."

Kagome blanched slightly; she couldn't picture the slightly loony demon tailoring clothes. The more she thought of it, though, it was sort of appropriate since he used his fire to make weapons. What better armor to go with that than robe of the fire rat?

He took her concentrated expression to be one of concern. "Keh, don't worry about it. We'll take them by first chance we get while we're traveling. Now, see if you can keep up on the way back."

"Wha-?" Her question was silently answered as Inuyasha took off running again. "Inuyasha!" Damning him, she followed after him, determined not to fall behind this time.

When they finally made it back to the clearing on the edge of the village, Kagome burst through the trees just a few seconds after Inuyahsa. It had been much easier for her to dodge trees on the way back since she could just mimic his path.

After the two caught their breath and Kagome retrieved some water from Kaede's hut, they were ready to begin basic defenses. Inuyasha showed her the best ways to use her claws for defense and how to evade an attack when necessary. After a couple of hours and several shredded trees later, the duo finally stopped for some lunch.

_**~One Hell of a Surprise~**_

After a hodge-podge meal of ramen, oden, and other various dishes, Kagome returned to her training

"Hey wench, try shooting one of your miko arrows. I wanna make sure your priestess powers haven't crapped out."

Kagome rolled her eyes but obliged anyway. She had secretly been wondering the same thing. She retrieved her bow and quiver, which had been unceremoniously dropped in outside Kaede's hut when lunch was announced. Throwing the quiver over her shoulder, she reached behind her, grabbed an arrow, and notched it in her trusty bow. If by some chance her powers did not awaken when she called, she would be devastated. She pulled her spiritual energy from within herself and tried to infuse it into the arrow, but was shocked to find she was met with opposition. She could feel her opposing powers raging inside her, fighting for dominance. While her reiki had more experience and control—although not much—her youki was new and uncontrolled and very strong. Finally her spiritual energy slightly broke free, resulting in an arrow that could barely be called a spiritual arrow. She shot it anyway into the tree she was aiming at; at least she was still accurate. Kagome looked into Inuyasha's eyes, nervousness visible in her own.

"I'm not sure, but I think once my powers balance out I should be alright. It was a battle just to do that much, like my powers were canceling each other out," she paused for a thoughtful moment. "Unless my spiritual powers are ebbing and that was the tail-end of them!" Now the nervous look in her eye had transformed into one of pure terror.

"Keh, there's no way you'd be born with both kinds of powers only to have them leave. Just keep practicin'!"

While Inuyasha's words were simple, he did have a point. Surely the kamis had a purpose in mind when bestowing her with spiritual powers. Her half-demon nature could not be helped since she was born of a demon, and the gods had knowingly given her miko powers on top of this. She was quite possibly the only one of her kind. She could only hope they knew what they were doing…

* * *

**So I know it's really short, but I wanted to get this out before I lost motivation again. I'm already working on the next chapter and hopefully *fingers crossed* I will have it out next Sunday (I'm trying to keep myself on an updating schedule this time around so I don't fall off like last time. Anyway, hope you enjoyed it!**


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